Here's the salary needed to afford a home in the 15 largest cities

Cost of city living

A 'Home For Sale' sign is displayed outside a house in Martinez, Calif.

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Are you thinking of buying a home but daunted by the financial footwork? The team at SmartAsset.com crunched the numbers for you using their mortgage calculator. Read on to find out the median home-payment costs for the 15 largest cities in the U.S. — from the least expensive to the priciest — and the salary you'll need to pay them.

15. Indianapolis

The most affordable city on the list, Indianapolis' average monthly home payments about are $609, and you'd need a salary of about $20,294 to afford this.

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14. Jacksonville, Florida

Jacksonville, Florida

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The monthly home payment for Jacksonville is $700 on average. You'd need a salary of about $23,332 to afford this.

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13. San Antonio

The Riverwalk in San Antonio.

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Monthly home payments in San Antonio are $706 on average. You'd need a salary of about $23,529 to afford this.

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12. Philadelphia

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

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The monthly home payment for Philly is $734 on average. You'd need a salary of about $24,465 to afford this.

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11. Columbus, Ohio

Columbus, Ohio

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The monthly home payment for Columbus is $771 on average. You'd need a salary of about $25,702 to afford this.

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10. Phoenix

Phoenix, Arizona.

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The monthly home payment for Phoenix is about $804. You'd need a salary of about $26,803 to afford this.

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9. Houston

Houston Metrorail Light rail train

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The monthly home payment for Houston is about $812, and a salary of around $27,067 should be sufficient.

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8. Dallas

The Dallas skyline seen through the windows of a penthouse at night.

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The monthly home payment for Dallas is $825 on average. You'd need a salary of about $27,505 to afford this.

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7. Chicago

Chicago, Illinois

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Monthly home payments in the Windy City blow in at about $1,327. You'd need a salary of about $44,244 to afford this.

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6. Austin, Texas

Austin, Texas

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The monthly home payments for Austin is $1,426 on average, but the city also boasts high property taxes. You'd need a salary of about $47,523 to afford this.

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5. San Diego

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The monthly home payments for San Diego is $2,274 on average. With a salary of about $75,816 you could afford this, making San Diego the most affordable of the Californian cities on this list.

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4. Los Angeles

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The monthly home payments for L.A. is around $2,317. You'd need a salary of about $77,000 to afford this.

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3. New York City

The Upper West Side in Manhattan, New York.

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Monthly home payments in the Big Apple take a bite out of salaries, averaging around $2,910. You'd need to earn about $99,963 a year to afford this. Though the payments are similar to the next most expensive city — found in Southern California — home there are around 20 percent more expensive.

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2. San Jose

Silicon Valley is still the epicenter of innovation in the world, but China — and, increasingly, India and other emerging markets — is catching up.

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The monthly home payments for San Jose is around $3,000. You'd need a salary of about $99,963 to afford this.

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1. San Francisco

San Francisco, California

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The City by the Bay has some of the most expensive real estate in the country. The median home is largely out of reach for the typical household, at $3,858 per month in total monthly payments. You'd need a salary of about $128,600 to afford this.